This invention relates to an apparatus for refrigeration treatment, particularly to an apparatus by which cryogenic air is provided and applied to an affected portion at high speed.
In medical treatment of sprains, rheumatism, contusions, neuralgia and other diseases, successful results are obtained by cooling an affected portion with a cryogenic gas applied at high speed and in a short time. In this type of treatment it is sometimes required to apply a cryogenic temperature of -80.degree. C. to -190.degree. C. to an affected portion.
Generally, a simple method of obtaining a cryogenic temperature for medical treatment is to use ice or a refrigerant, but it does not offer the cryogenic temperature and consequently, cryogenic air obtained from a refrigerator or cryogenic carbon dioxide gas obtained by blowing out liquefied carbon dioxide gas is used. However, it is not easy to obtain such cryogenic temperature as can meet the above requirement. If the application is simply to cool the affected portion, it is possible to apply liquefied gas to the affected portion by utilizing the cryogenic latent heat produced in vaporization of liquefied oxygen (boiling point -183.degree. C.) or liquid nitrogen (boiling point -196.degree. C.).
If these gases are used for medical treatment in a small treatment room however, the room will be filled with gas. The former gas may involve the danger of fire and the latter gas may cause lack of oxygen in the room. Thus, it is not desirable to use these gases for medical treatment in the manner mentioned above.